Frank Sutton

Frank Sutton
Sutton as Sergeant Carter with Jim Nabors as Gomer Pyle, 1966.
Born	Frank Spencer Sutton (1923-10-23)October 23, 1923 Clarksville, Tennessee, USA
Died	June 28, 1974(1974-06-28) (aged 50) Shreveport, Louisiana
Cause of death	Heart attack
Resting place	Greenwood Cemetery Clarksville, Tennessee
Alma mater	Columbia University
Spouse(s)	Toby Igler Sutton (married 1949, 2 children)

Frank Spencer Sutton (October 23, 1923 – June 28, 1974) was an American actor best remembered for his role of Gunnery Sergeant Vince Carter on the CBS television series Gomer Pyle, U.S.M.C.

Early life

Sutton was born in Clarksville, Tennessee, the only child of Frank Sims Sutton and Thelma (née Spencer).^[1] When he was eight years old, his father became employed as a Linotype operator at the Nashville Tennessean in Nashville. Frank Sims Sutton died from a gastrointestinal hemorrhage on March 16, 1938, leaving behind his wife and 14-year-old son.

Sutton developed an interest in acting, playing his first role at age nine, and also starred in the drama club at East Nashville High School during his attendance. He later said, "The first time I walked out on a stage, I had a warm feeling. I knew then I wanted to be an actor."^[2]

In 1941, Sutton graduated from East Nashville High School, and returned to Clarksville to become a radio announcer. He enlisted in the United States Army during World War II, and served in the South Pacific, taking part in fourteen assault landings.^[3]

Acting career

Honorably Discharged as a sergeant, he began acting on stage.^[4] In 1949, he married Toby Igler, with whom he had two children.^[2] He attended the Columbia University School of General Studies, graduating cum laude with a bachelor's degree in drama in 1952.

Throughout the 1950s, Sutton played small roles in television shows such as Decoy, Route 66, Naked City, The Greatest Show on Earth, The Fugitive, The Goldbergs, 87th Precinct, Gunsmoke, Target: The Corruptors, Empire, The Twilight Zone, and The Untouchables. He had a continuing role as Cadet Eric Rattison, the great rival of the "Polaris Unit" manned by the series' heroes, in Tom Corbett, Space Cadet from 1950 to 1955. In 1955, he received his big break in the Academy Award-winning movie Marty, in which he played the title character's friend, Ralph. He also had a role in The Satan Bug, a 1965 spy thriller. He returned to the stage in The Andersonville Trial in the early 1960s.

Sutton's breakthrough role was on "Gomer Pyle, U.S.M.C.", a 1964 episode of The Andy Griffith Show, in which he played the cynical and easily exasperated Sergeant Carter opposite Jim Nabors' character Gomer Pyle. This episode led to a spin-off television series of the same name, where Sutton continued the role for five seasons, until the show ended its run in 1969. He also appeared in public service announcements in the role of Sergeant Carter. After Gomer Pyle was canceled, Sutton appeared regularly on Nabors' variety show The Jim Nabors Hour with Gomer Pyle co-star Ronnie Schell; Sutton played the brother-in-law of Nabors' character in comedy sketches.^[5][6] Sutton performed in dinner theater, playing, among other roles, the father in Norman, Is That You? and made guest appearances on other television programs.^[7]

Death

On June 28, 1974, while preparing for a performance of the comedy Luv at the Beverly Barn Dinner Playhouse in Shreveport, Louisiana, Sutton died of a heart attack at the age of 50. He is buried in his hometown of Clarksville.^[2]

Filmography

References

External links

• Several dozen articles about Frank Sutton
• Frank Sutton at the Internet Movie Database
• Frank Spencer Sutton at Find a Grave
• Obituary on National Obituary Archive
• 2009 article from the Clarksville Leaf Chronicle, the newspaper from Sutton's hometown.